Okay all you pet lovers, lets have a toll on this one. I have one dog (a beagle of course) and I enroll her into Doggie Daycare.

I have found that in the past that when I left her alone while I went to work, she started to develop behavioural problems, specifically she would lick her pads contstantly.

I began enrolling my beagle into Doggie Daycare and now not only had her 'paw licking' stopped, she now knows how to properly socialize with other dogs.

I personally give Doggie Daycare centres a "Thumbs Up". :)

Lets hear from the rest of you.

marko

March 18th, 2002, 10:37 AM

Hi there RogueBeagle,

If dog owners are out all day due to work or other important obligations, then why should doggy daycare be bad?

The dog has an activity all day long....and is staying out of trouble and is supervised...and has other doggy interaction.

I guess what people would be concerned about is that the dog gets no attention from you.

But as long as you give your pet attention and love when you are around then I don't see the problem.

Good luck!!!
Marko with his 2 cents

Terry Smith

November 15th, 2004, 09:46 AM

I'm ne to this forum, but have heard that sometimes unmatched dogs can be a problem and creat fears in youg dogs if an older one is in contact and is more agressive.

tenderfoot

November 15th, 2004, 11:27 AM

I ditto what Marko says and add a tad more.
Dogs are highly social animals and require good company to have a healthy social attitude. We all want to have dogs in our lives but our lifestyles are not always what is best for the dog. In our modern times dogs are placed in very un-natural situations. Insolation while parents are at work, lack of socialization and exercise, and lack of stimulation or good leadership. So the doggie daycare can fill the gap in a lot of those areas and make a huge difference.
The quality of the daycare can make the difference. The people running the show must understand dogs, behavior, obedience and health. They must monitor the dogs at all times and be effective in controlling bad behavior. Cleaniness, quiet times, activites, and outside time are all a part of the big picture.
But as Marko said, daycare does not replace mom and dad. You still need to interact with your dog and provide learning, love and stimulation as much as possible. We get a dog to have relationship, so we do need to make sure we are holding up our end of the bargain.
I definately prefer doggie daycare over dog parks - where there is little control and terrible things can happen.

goldenblaze

November 17th, 2004, 05:40 PM

I believe doggie day care is great for many dog. I do day care and over night at my house and all the dogs that come love it. All the dogs play and are treated like my own and learn things from each other. I think it's great when people realize it is better for the dog to spend time with others than left at home alone so much. I have some that come every week and some that come only couple times a mth. One is a beagle Jake, he comes weekly my two dogs look foreward to him coming.

TalonsMa

November 18th, 2004, 01:38 PM

We live doggy daycare is great! And have been waiting for Solara to become housebroken so we can take her. We're going to a puppy social this friday and if all goes well she will start daycare next week! :)

Shelby

November 19th, 2004, 12:01 AM

I've been dropping Izzy and Wilson off to daycare for the past 3 weeks and they love it! Wilson scratches at their door when he gets out of the car.

Delirium

November 19th, 2004, 09:12 AM

My foster just flunked out of puppy play group heh. It was his first time and it seems that he wants to pick and choose who he wants to play with and is pretty loud about the ones he doesn't like. :rolleyes: He's a beagle snob.

Ah well. It'll be a play group of two for my dogs from now on. Thankfully the services that pet sitters provide can be so versatile so they're happy to just take my guys out on their own.

Dee

Daisie

November 22nd, 2004, 11:13 AM

I'm ne to this forum, but have heard that sometimes unmatched dogs can be a problem and creat fears in youg dogs if an older one is in contact and is more agressive.

I agree with you, except if you find a good daycare, they know the regular dogs and can watch out for new charges under their care. The place I go to have the place divided up for small breeds, lg breeds and puppies. Once they feel the puppies want to play with the big dogs then they include them. Also if they need a time out then they get a time out, the dogs respond pretty quickly and will settle down. More often then not dogs who go to daycare are good dogs, social dogs and you won't see any problems.

I LOVE daycare, but my dog doesn't go very often. I stay at home, so if she goes it is just so I can get a full day of erands done.

Dukieboy

November 22nd, 2004, 01:32 PM

I am definately considering doggie daycare in the winter months. You can tune in during the day and check on your baby.

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Type in USERNAME: urbandog, no password required.

Press Refresh or F5 and the pix will update

Batman

November 22nd, 2004, 04:52 PM

As one of the owners of The Original Dog House, Toronto’s largest centre for dogs that includes daycare, I could write a series of short stories and compile them into a book showcasing the benefits of this essential service.

Hi Mark!
I just saw your sign by Sherwood Park and was looking at your website. I am wondering at what age you start to take dogs. My guy is still very young but I am thinking something like The Original Dog House would be great for when he gets bigger. Do you have an information package that you mail out?

shyeyes

October 21st, 2010, 01:00 PM

i think it totally depends on the owner's situation and breed of dog. not to mention the dog's unique personality themselves.

i am a fan of doggy daycare for the first year. afterwards, it's not as necessary. the most important socialization period in regards to doggy daycare benefits is between 4 to 8 months. afterwards, it's not a bad idea but you probably don't need it daily.

most of my friends who are dog owners dropped it down to just once a week to every few weeks. or if they know they will be away from home for an extended period. some only keep their older dogs there when their dog needs a grooming - most daycares have grooming services. you get a discount on either the grooming or the daycare (or in my case - we get a discount on both). the added benefit is that rather then getting wound-up after a grooming day where they spend a lot of time just sitting/standing around, daycares promise to tire out your dog as well.

my pup loves doggy daycare too.

but i agree with some one else who mentioned it already - it may take time to find the right one for you and your dog. we had to go to 3 different places before we landed one that matched us. you can always set up a 1/2 trial with them, as well.

for us, our dog is great with other dogs but he's shy around aggressive dogs. we found a place that does not accept dogs with behaviour problems or are too aggressive. in other words, they seek clientele with dogs that are either sociable or easy to become sociable.

this suits us. but may not suit other owners who have breeds that are more above the ave. with energy.

Dog Dancer

October 21st, 2010, 01:41 PM

Doggy day care saved Shadow's life - literally. Shadow has extreme seperation anxiety and as a result spent several years going to the best day care in the world! I think it's all about finding the right day care. A poorly run centre can be dangerous to say the least. If day care is an option for your dog make sure you do tons of research and spend some time there with the dog and the owners and make sure you are 100% comfortable with the entire setup. First aid training for the staff should be mandatory as well. Some dogs though don't do well with day care, be it from aggression issues, or fear. My lab didn't like day care at all, she was just too overwhelmed by it, and the operator was aware enough to call me and ask me to come and get her after a couple hours because she was too stressed out with it. I say big thumbs up for the right place.

Bailey_

October 22nd, 2010, 06:56 AM

i am a fan of doggy daycare for the first year. afterwards, it's not as necessary. the most important socialization period is between 4 to 8 months. afterwards, it's not a bad idea but you probably don't need it daily.

I needed to respond to this as the statement is not entirely correct. If we want to get technical with a 'timeframe', the most important time in a dogs life for canine socialization, is from it's own mother and littermates - between the first 3 - 5 weeks of it's life. After that - it's still extremely important that the dog recieves regular socialization with other dogs, experiencing new places/situations, for it's entire "young adulthood" - which lasts for about the first 2 - 3 years of its life.

Not to mention that it's to every dogs benefit to continue having this regular socialization through it's entire life.

As long as the daycare is reputable and not overcrowded, I think it's a great idea. :)

shyeyes

October 22nd, 2010, 12:21 PM

I needed to respond to this as the statement is not entirely correct. If we want to get technical with a 'timeframe', the most important time in a dogs life for canine socialization, is from it's own mother and littermates - between the first 3 - 5 weeks of it's life. After that - it's still extremely important that the dog recieves regular socialization with other dogs, experiencing new places/situations, for it's entire "young adulthood" - which lasts for about the first 2 - 3 years of its life.

Not to mention that it's to every dogs benefit to continue having this regular socialization through it's entire life.

first of all - yes, i know that the early socialization of a pup is through his mom and siblings. i wasn't being technical because i wanted to get to the gist of when doggy daycare can be used. i'm not here to sound like an expert. i'm here to meet people with common interests and talk about our dogs.

not sure what the rules are elsewhere but all the doggy daycares here required full vaccination (usually around 4 months). and while socialization is not less important before those 4 months, it's riskier to the dog if they are not fully vaccinated. i didn't want to risk that as their immune system can be more easily compromised.

so until 3 months, where he was with his dog family to about 4 months, we only did doggy playdates with dogs and owners that we trusted in a safer environment.

it is a personal choice though - i don't judge others for bringing their less then 4 months pups to dog parks. i'm sure they keep a good eye on them but we just didn't feel comfortable doing that to our young pup.

secondly, i never said that socialization should stop beyond 8 months or even past a year.

if you read what i wrote, i merely was trying state that daycare and even socialization is not necessary on a DAILY basis. that the peak importance to get them socialized is at THAT early age of between 4 and 8 months to establish an important trend. afterwards, it's good but not something as crucial as far as a daily basis.

a know a whack of dogs that only go to daycare now (after they turned 1 year) once a week or every other week and they are all amazing dogs. social with people, great with kids and great with other dogs. it's not the end all be all if people can not continue to afford daycare after a dog's first year.

and it depends entirely on the dog. not just the type of breed but each dog's unique personality.

finally, i don't know you and maybe your are a dog expert. but just like parenting, there is no one truly black and white area on how to be a good owner and raise a great dog. i've seen different approaches and they were all great and they all worked.

parent experts are different sometimes and debate amongst one another. same goes with dog experts.